Study Abroad
Study Abroad (for Classics and Ancient Studies)
The department encourages study abroad, usually during a student's
junior year. Majors who study in Rome or Athens return to
Mount Holyoke
with new—or renewed—vigor and enthusiasm for the study of classics.
There are three programs of study that we frequently recommend
majors (detailed below): the Intercollegiate
Center for Classical Studies in Rome
(ICCS), the College Year in Athens (CYA), and Mount Holyoke's
January Term in Rome (usually offered every other January).
In addition,
the Classics Advanced Semester Program (CASP)
in Athens, as its name implies, is available for advanced students
of Greek. (For Summer Programs, see below).
Some majors have chosen to combine a semester in Rome or Athens
with a semester in Oxford, St. Andrews, Royal Holloway or University
College London.
J-term in Rome
In January of 2009 Geoffrey Sumi and Mark Landon will lead
a trip to Rome to study the history and monuments of the ancient
city. Students interested in this program will be required to
register for the trip as a January term course (and will earn two
academic credits).During 10 days in Italy, students
will visit ancient
sites and museums in the "Eternal City" and take short
excursions to Ostia (the port of Rome), Cerveteri (an Etruscan
site), and Tivoli
(Hadrian's Villa). As part of the course, students will also be
required to attend classes at MHC for the first part of J-term
(approximately
one week) before embarking for Rome. Questions should be addressed
to Geoffrey Sumi (gsumi@mtholyoke.edu).
Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies in Rome (ICCS
or “The
Centro”)
The ICCS was established in 1965 by representatives of ten American
colleges and universities; the number of member institutions has
now grown to 90. It provides undergraduate students with an opportunity
in Rome to study ancient history and archaeology, Greek and Latin
literature, and ancient art. Students are
expected to take four courses, which is a minimum and normal load;
a few students take five courses. A major part of the academic work
is a required comprehensive and integrated course called The Ancient
City, which is commensurate with and requires as much class
and study time as two semester courses. It covers Roman archaeology
and
topography,
aspects of social and urban history of Rome, and Roman civilization.
Frequent site visits, intensive museum tours and
lectures, and wider-ranging trips outside Rome (based on the Professor-in-Charge’s
areas of expertise) are included in the course.
In the recent past, Campania and Sicily have been the focus of extended
study. Because The Ancient City course depends on prior knowledge
of Roman history, students are expected to prepare themselves by
taking a Roman history course or by careful reading on the subject.
ICCS in Catania, Sicily
The ICCS now offers a second program
that takes advantage of Sicily’s remarkable archaeological
remains. The curriculum is much like that of the ICCS in Rome, in
that students may take courses in Greek, Latin, Italian, Art History,
and Mediterranean Culture.
College Year in Athens (CYA)
Despite its name, CYA welcomes students who want to spend one semester
in Greece. Established in 1962, CYA, in association with the International
Center for Hellenic and Mediterranean Studies, offers unparalleled
opportunities to experience the unique historical and cultural contributions
of Greece and the surrounding region. The curriculum is organized
in two tracks: Ancient Greek Civilization and East Mediterranean
Area Studies. This division cuts across the disciplines but students
can, and often do, take courses from both tracks.
Field trips are an integral part of the curriculum and a principal
means by which CYA brings students into direct contact with the people,
geography, landscape,
natural beauties, history, civilization, sites and monuments of Greece. Although
itineraries may vary, field
trips to major sites in Crete, the
Peloponnese, and Central and Northern
Greece engage students in what Philip Sherrard called “the
pursuit of Greece,” inspiring
a process of discovery that can spark a life-long interest.
Classics Advanced Semester Program (CASP) in
Athens
This relatively new program is designed
- to provide a comprehensive curriculum for advanced undergraduate
and graduate students who have a background and strong interest
in the Classics.
- to familiarize students with academic on-site teaching and
participation in field trips to archeological sites and museums.
- to
help students develop research oriented work through formal
courses on Greek literature (in Greek), epigraphy, history,
and topography.
University of Arizona's Orvieto Institute
Located in scenic Umbria, Italy, the Orvieto Institute
offers a full range of classes in the classical languages
(as well as Italian),
art history,
archaeology,
anthropology, and architecture. The program also includes site
visits to Rome, Pompeii, Assisi, Cerveteri, Tarquinia, and
Paestum.
Summer Programs
During the summer, UMass (Amherst) conducts an archaeological field
school at Poggio
Civitate in Tuscany,
Italy . This program runs for approximately six weeks and instructs
students
on all aspects of archaeological fieldwork, including field survey,
stratigraphy, excavation, cataloguing and preservation. Five College
students may apply
and receive academic credit for their work.
Students who anticipate taking an advanced degree in archaeology,
ancient art history, ancient history, or classics can also apply
to summer sessions of the American School of Classical
Studies in Athens.
On its website the Archaeological Institute of America (AIA)
provides a list of archaeological digs looking for volunteers
for the summer.
Often the
sponsoring institution provides room and board, while volunteers
pay for their own transportation.
The University of Arizona's Orvieto Institute offers
undergraduate and graduate (MA level) courses in Vergil and
Livy. These courses
are designed
especially
for students interested in teaching Latin at the secondary level.
Contact Cynthia White (University of Arizona) for more information.
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